Bruised and Battered
by itsnotelliesturn
Summary: Joel tries his best to help Ellie cope with the hell that David put her through. He may be able to heal her wounds, but can he help mend her broken heart?
1. Chapter 1

"Baby girl, you're gonna need to let me look at the damage." He tried to keep his voice as gentle as possible. The broken girl before him shook her head violently, causing her head to spin.

"I know how hard this must be for you.." He started, a single hand hesitantly reaching out to grasp her shoulder gently. She flinched, causing his heart to drop to the pit of his stomach.

His mind flashed back to when he had found her covered in David's blood. Her clothes were tattered, her eyes wide with fear as she sobbed into her knees. She looked so helpless, so scared. He had never felt such hatred until he realized what the sick bastard had put Ellie through. It was clear what he had done. Beaten her, tortured her and.. He couldn't even think about it.

Shaking his head, he tried to clear away the thoughts as he placed her battered face in his rough palms. "You trust me, right?" His eyes were filled with hope, almost afraid of her answer.

"Yes." She whispered in return, green eyes filled with un-shed tears. "Then let me help you." And with that, she nodded.

He hated this. He hated putting her through this. Gripping the hem of her shirt, he gently pulled it over her head.

Her white, pale skin was covered with red gashes, purple bruises and burns. He felt his stomach turn at the sight before him. Letting out a deep breath through his nostrils, he watched as she closed her eyes shut. Oh, this hurt him more than she knew. Some bruises looked like fingerprints, and this boiled Joel's blood. He knew this wasn't the end to her injuries. And just thinking of all she went through made him feel as if he might be sick to his stomach.

"Okay, I'm gonna need to pull your jeans down, alright?" He gulped, watching her auburn hair bounce as she nodded in understanding. Hesitantly, he un buttoned her jeans and slowly pulled them down to her ankles. Her bottom half was no different from the top. She had been tortured over and over. Her wounds proved this.

"Oh, baby girl.." He tried to be strong for her.

And so, he got to work. He disinfected and applied cream to as many wounds as he could. It took him about two hours to nurse every single place, but he soon found his hard work had payed off.

Ellie had kept her eyes shut the entire time, only muttering a curse word here and there when something stung; or he wrapped the gauze too tight.

"We need to let the cuts breathe a bit." He said, moving over to grab one of his big shirts. "Wear this for tonight; it won't be as tight and hopefully, it won't irritate them further."

"What about my jeans?" She mumbled, a single hand reaching out to grab his shirt.

"You can wear some of my boxers, alright?" He gave her an encouraging nod before handing them over as well.

Out of respect for Ellie, he turned his back as she changed. Even though he had just seen her half naked, he felt like it was the right thing to do.

"Okay." She muttered, her voice barely above a whisper.

He watched with sad eyes as she made her way over to the rotten mattress.

Lowering herself down onto it, she pulled her knees to her chest and shivered.

Sighing, he moved over to grab a blanket he had found earlier in the day. Moving over towards the girl, he gently placed it on top of her before climbing onto the bed with her.

He couldn't help but think that if he had showed up sooner, she wouldn't have had to go through as much pain. Sighing, his right hand raised to rub his throbbing forehead.

As if Ellie could read his mind, she spoke up. "You couldn't have done anything." Her voice was low. It lacked feeling. It was as if she was dead; numb.

"I'm sorry." He shook his head, wishing he could steal away her pain and harbor it for himself.

"I know."

"Can I..?" He didn't have a chance to finish, Ellie knew what he was going to propose. "Yes." Was all she said before scooting over closer to him and laying her head on his chest. He was so warm.

Sighing, she let herself melt into his comforting embrace. Her tiny fingers began to play with the fabric of his shirt, pulling and twisting it. Her mind was beginning to wander, and Joel noticed this.

"I was thinking we could just rest tomorrow." He broke her thoughts, and Ellie was thankful for this.

"I'm fine to keep going."

"No you're not." His voice was stern, yet gentle.

Letting out a huff of air, Ellie found it impossible to hold back the tears any longer. Letting out a loud sob, she clutched onto Joel tighter.

"Shhh..." He soothed, one hand wrapping around her waist, and the other stroking her auburn hair. "I'm here.. You're safe now. It's all going to be okay."

Her tears soaked his shirt, and he didn't seem to mind. His hand moved in small circles on her back,.

"I hate him! I hate him!" She screamed into Joel's chest, her fingers turning white from her tight grip on the cloth of Joel's shirt.

"I do too.." He admitted through clenched teeth. If David hadn't already been dead when he arrived, he would have bashed his head in.

"You're gonna be alright. I promise." That was a promise Joel wasn't sure he could keep.

**Okay, I hope you enjoyed this! There will be more chapters! Stay tuned!**


	2. Chapter 2

He woke up to the the feeling of the uneven mattress rocking. Shooting up, he rubbed his groggy eyes and looked over to his companion.

She was whimpering, her fingers desperately pulling at the small blanket he had placed over her. His frown deepened, and he lightly placed his hands upon her shoulders.

"It's just a nightmare, Ellie." He tried to keep his tone as soft as possible. He didn't want there to be any chance of her mistaking him for that monster.

She was drenched with sweat. Her feet began to kick as if someone had a hold on them; on her.

"Ellie, come on now.." He spoke a little bit louder and tightened his grip slightly.

This caused a reaction, and as soon as her eyes opened she extended her hands to swat Joel away.

"Get off.." She whined, hands quickly rubbing at her own skin.

She could feel him. He was all over her. "He won't get off." Her tone was desperate.

"Shh.." Joel tried to comfort her, but it did no good. She continued to rub away at her already sore skin. "I need him off, Joel."

He could tell she was panicking.

"Get him off!" She said through clenched teeth, salty tears beginning to run down her cheeks.

Finally, Joel reached out and grabbed her lightly at the wrists. "He's dead, Ellie. He's gone and he can't hurt you anymore. I promise you that." He tried to keep his voice steady.

Shaking her head, she looked down at their hands.

"Look at me." Joel whispered, desperately wanting to make her feel whole again.

At first, she just sat there and continued to shake her head. But, after a few moments.. her wet hues met his.

Her eyes told a sad story that no one should ever have to hear. He could see just how hurt she was.

Eyes that were once filled with such hope, now looked dead.

Leaning forward, he pressed his warm forehead against hers.

She took a deep breath, her body now beginning to relax.

"You are strong. You are a fighter. You are so much more than this, Ellie."

More tears welled in her eyes.

Large, rough hands reached to cup her small face. His thumbs hovered over the cuts, a deep frown forming on his handsome features.

Her hands hesitantly reached up to grab onto his wrists, holding his hands in place.

She loved him for loving her.

She could see it in his eyes. Ellie could tell that he truly cared.

He meant everything to her, and she was pretty sure he felt the exact same way.

"You made me strong. You made me a fighter, Joel." Her green eyes fell for a single moment.

"I just.. I just don't know if I have any fight left in me." She whispered.

And with that small sentence, he felt as if he had been punched right in the gut. That sick bastard broke her. He chewed her up and spit her right back out. He deserved everything he got and more.

"You've just got to keep finding something to fight for."

Ellie bit hard onto her bottom lip.

"There has to be something, baby girl. Tell me something worth fighting for."

She paused for a moment before replying. "You."


	3. Chapter 3

The bright sun peaked through the ripped curtains, causing Ellie to stir. She began to rub at her sore eyes, a loud yawn escaping her pink lips. She moved to rest on her side, but immediately regretted the decision when she felt a horrid pain run through her every limb. Biting down on her lip bottom, she whimpered; trying her absolute best not to wake up Joel.

But, her efforts were deemed useless. He had become so sensitive to sound over the years. She should have know the smallest of noises would cause him to wake.

Her eyes met his sleepy ones, and she mouthed a simple 'sorry.'

He shook his head at her and propped himself up with his elbow. "What's hurtin'?" His brows furrowed.

"My side. But, it's alright. I just need to stick to sleeping on my back from now on." She tried to force a smile. It was strange, and extremely obvious. Joel frowned at this. "There's no need to pretend, alright?" He reached out to place a piece of auburn hair behind her ear.

Nodding, Ellie moved back to her previous position. She was utterly exhausted. Emotionally and physically. She couldn't imagine getting up and having to travel for the rest of the day. She flinched at the thought of it.

As if he read her mind, he altered his position. He rested a protective arm around her, and carefully pulled her close to him. "We're going to wait until you're in a little bit better shape to get on the move again. I don't need you tiring yourself out anymore than you already have. You need to rest."

Nodding, her soft hands found his rough ones. Their clumsy fingers searched for a bit, before finally intertwining.

It was a simple gesture; one that Ellie thoroughly enjoyed.

And with that, they fell into another slumber

Joel woke before Ellie this time, and he tried his hardest to slip off the moldy mattress without waking her. His attempt was successful. He decided not to wake her until he had the food prepared. He had a little bit of rabbit left and a two cans of beans. He would give her the meat, and treat himself with a single can.

Ellie woke up to the feeling of a familiar hand on her shoulder. As soon as she realized it was Joel, her body relaxed, and she pushed herself up into a sitting position; ignoring the pain coursing through her body.

"You've gotta eat something." He said, handing her the container filled with slightly burnt rabbit meat.

She felt her stomach growl, greedy hands reaching out to snatch the container before Joel could say another word. He couldn't help but chuckle at this.

She was starving, and he felt slightly guilty for not waking her up sooner. He knew she needed the rest. And it probably did her a whole lot of good getting to sleep those extra minutes.

Joel had already eaten. He had watched Ellie sleep. Her breathing; The rise and fall of her chest. He let his mind wander to dangerous places. He thought about all she had to go through, and what he would have done if he had gotten there in time.

It didn't take Ellie no time to finish her meal. Before Joel knew it, he had looked up to see the girl wiping her mouth with his old shirt; causing him to crack a smile. It was nice to see some hints of the old Ellie emerge. He just hoped and prayed what had happened back there with David wouldn't haunt her for life.

"How is it possible for me to still be so tired?" She asked, her right arm reaching out; as if to tell Joel to get his ass back in the bed.

"Your body's trying to heal. It's working over time to get you back to normal." He replied, slowly easing himself onto the bed.

"Well, I'm never going to be back to normal." She muttered, her voice barely audible.

But Joel heard it.

And he wished he hadn't.

Ellie saw the look of distress on his face and instantly regretted her statement. "Joel, I was just kidding." Lie.

"No you weren't." He sighed, rough fingers moving to rub his aching temples.

"I shouldn't have said it; I'm sorry." Her head leaned over to rest on his shoulder, her bottom lip jutting out.

"Don't be sorry, baby girl." She had nothing to be sorry for. "But I'm gonna make things okay for you again." He leaned back, causing her to go down with him. He was careful, though. He didn't want to cause her any more discomfort.

Joel was so warm. He just had this thing about him. Something about him just made Ellie feel incredibly safe. No matter what kind of dangerous situation they were in.

She didn't doubt him. There was no use in arguing. And who knows, maybe he could pull her out of the darkness David had dragged her into.

"I know one thing that would make me feel better." She smiled into the fabric of his shirt.

"And what's that?" He kissed her forehead.

"Call me baby girl again." A red glow flushed her cheeks.

"Baby girl." He whispered, lips pressed against her temple.

And then, they slept.

* * *

**I hope you guys liked it :) I will be continuing this story!**


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